Camtasia Studio Learning Center

Camtasia Studio 6 Tutorial:

Improve Audio Quality with Audio Enhancements

Learn how to use audio enhancements to automatically enhance the audio on the Timeline. Includes how to remove background noise, even out the volume levels, and enhance for a male or female voice.

Now you try: Download the sample project files to practice apply audio enhancements.

Audio Enhancements

Camtasia Studio > Task List > Audio enhancements

Audio enhancements help to automatically improve the quality of audio on the Timeline.

Audio enhancements apply to all audio on the Timeline, not to a selection or individual clip.

Even Out the Volume Levels

Even out volume levels option adjusts the volume of the audio on the Timeline to a standard level. Use this option when the recording level between audio clips varies greatly.

1. In the Task List, select Audio enhancements.
2. The Audio Enhancements pane appears. Enable the Even out volume levels option.
   
3. Select an option from the Settings dropdown that best describes the level of audio variation on the Timeline. The volume leveling occurs immediately. If you select the Custom Settings option, click Show advanced options to adjust the custom settings.
   • Ratio: Sets the compression slope which determines how the output signal changes in relation to the input signal once the input signal exceeds the threshold.
   • Threshold: Sets the level which signals are compressed or limited. Increasing the threshold clamps signals at a higher level, reducing the amount of compression or limiting.
   • Gain: Process of reducing dynamics lowers the signal’s overall level. The gain control compensates by adding increasing output gain, or signal level.
4. To preview the new audio, click Play in the Preview Window. Enable and disable the Even out volume levels option to compare the audio quality before and after applying this option.
5. Click OK.
   

Remove Background Noise

Background noise, such as the hum of the computer or people talking nearby can affect the quality of the audio in a recording. Select the Remove background noise option to reduce background noise for the audio on the Timeline.

Automatically Remove Background Noise

1. In the Task List, select Audio enhancements.
2. The Audio Enhancements pane appears. Enable the Automatically try to detect noise on the Timeline.
3. Click the Remove Noise button. Camtasia Studio detects noise in the audio by using a selection with silence.
4. The status area changes green and displays Noise Removal Enabled once complete.
   
5. The color of the audio waveform changes from teal to burgundy. To preview the new audio, click Play in the Preview Window. Enable and disable the Restore noise option to compare the audio quality before and after applying this option.
   
6. Click OK.

Manually Remove Background Noise

1. In the Task List, select Audio enhancements.
2. The Audio Enhancements pane appears. Select an area on the Timeline (less than one second) where silence should exist on the audio waveform. If no true silence exists, you may have to select an area that includes speaking or other audio. Drag the Adjust sensitivity slider to adjust the noise reduction.
3. Click the Remove Noise button. The status area changes to green and displays Noise Removal Enabled once complete.
4. To preview the new audio, click Play in the Preview Window. Enable and disable the Restore noise option to compare the audio quality before and after applying this option.
5. Click OK.

Adjust Sensitivity Slider

Use the Adjust sensitivity slider if the noise reduction process caused the audio quality to degrade. Degradation may occur if the noise removal occurred within a selection without true silence.

Apply Vocal Enhancements

Use vocal enhancements to remove audible mouse clicks, fix clipping, and optimize audio for a male or female voice.

Optimize For

Select to optimize for a male or female voice. The Optimize for option can:

• Help remove the sibilance (hissing noise from “s” sounds).
• Help remove the plosives (popping noise from “p” sounds).
• Minimize loud bass sounds that when a microphone is held to close when speaking.

Remove

Select to lessen the distortion caused by:

• Clipping: Cuts off the recorded audio when the audio volume reaches too high of a level. Clipping results in an audible distortion in the audio.
• Clicks: Removes recorded artifacts that sound like clicks.
• Click Sensitivity: Drag the slider to set the threshold for the filter.